


The Future Papas

by Probably_your_mom



Category: Ghost (Sweden Band)
Genre: Best Friends, Childhood Friends, Childhood Memories, Childhood Sweethearts, F/M, Family, Family Feels, First Kiss, First Love, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Parent-Child Relationship, Sibling Love, Spanking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-02
Updated: 2020-01-28
Packaged: 2021-02-26 00:49:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,598
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21644773
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Probably_your_mom/pseuds/Probably_your_mom
Summary: Growing up without your dad is hard....he had been drafted into the war. Being a future devil pope was not considered a good enough reason to avoid the war. This left his wife and future sister imperator to raise their 3 small sons on her own. And the oldest one is a handful!What kind of mischief will they get into?
Kudos: 6





	1. Chapter 1

Giovanni sat anxiously in the school principal's office, awaiting his certain doom. As usual, he was a victim of his own distracted behavior. He often got himself into a pickle with his impulsive restlessness, but today, he had done it good. Mama had been called, and she surely had been worried sick. He hated to burden her any worse than she already was. He was supposed to be the grown up, an example for his little brothers. Instead, he had fucked up yet again.

His stomach growled sharply, and he glanced at the clock. Lunch had been over three hours ago, and his misadventure caused him to miss it. He couldn't remember what he ate for breakfast. He continued to glance around nervously, his eyes stopping on a big wooden paddle hanging on the wall. "Board of Education" it said, surely that was a joke, though, right? It even had holes drilled in it, to decrease wind resistance or something. He felt a wave of nausea. He hoped his ass wouldn't be getting tore up by that beast of a thing. 

He didn't think Sister Mary Margaret would hurt him. She loved him, and he loved her back. Even if he was ornery and wiggly and talked all the time, he was a pleasant child who meant no harm, and he was a fabulous student. He had been able to read since he was four. At ten, he read at least at a high school level, and understood math and science concepts beyond that. Mama started teaching him very young, and he was smart. 

This time, though, he had really screwed up. He knew Sister was mad. She had called Mama. He hung his head in shame, hot tears burning his eyes. 

He had been doing nothing but playing ball with his friends, and the ball had rolled into the street in front of the school. He ran out to get it, but the street was on a hill, and the ball rolled down it. He chased after it, and by the time he reached it, he had gone several blocks. He picked it up, turned around, and realized he was downtown. He had never been downtown alone. He wandered down the street, wide eyed, and for some reason, no one noticed him. He stopped to play on a swing at the park, looked into store windows and ended up at the creek catching tadpoles. 

And that's where he was when Mary Margaret caught him, hours later. As soon as she yelled his name, he realized that recess was long over, and he was a wet, muddy mess. She grabbed him by the back of his shirt, picking him up, swatted him, and yelled, "Gio! Office! Now!" And he ran ahead of her back to the school, not daring to turn around. 

And now here he was. And she would be coming soon and he was in a world of shit. Sudden anger welled up in him. He didn't even mean to do this. He just lost track of time. 

The nun came in and sat behind the desk, looking very ominous. He shied away, not making eye contact. Mary Margaret was very angry, because she had been very worried. 

"Giovanni, explain yourself!"

He shifted back and forth looking away. "I was just chasing the ball, and..."

"Don't you lie! Look at me!"

He dared a quick glance and started again.   
"It wasn't really my fault."

"Like hell it isn't! Gio, what were you thinking??? To run off like that? Do you know how worried everyone was? Your mother? What if something happened to you? You could have drowned! Someone could have taken you...."

"But i didn't run off...didn't mean....i didn't think..."

"And that's just it, Gio! You don't think. You are a disobedient, willful little SHIT."

Anger flared in his eyes. "You won't let me talk!"

"You will pray for forgiveness for your rebellious nature!"  
She leaned over her desk, towering above him. 

He glared back. "Fuck. That. Shit."

She couldn't believe he said that. She was briefly stunned at his sudden mouthiness.   
"Boy, I think you got the devil in you."

"I AM the devil!"

Mary Margaret immediately lost it. "Insolence!" she bellowed! In an instant, she had him bent over and pinned to the desk, holding him in place while she rummaged in the desk drawer for something to whoop him with. She came out with a hairbrush, and smacked him across the ass as hard as she could. Thankfully, he had chosen corduroy, providing some protection; however a second later the pain hit him and he gasped.

"You. Will. Never. Do. Such. A. Stu Pid Thing A Gain. Do. You. Hear. Me? No. More. Smart. Mouth. Either!" Each syllable was accompanied by a whack just as hard as she could give it, and he whimpered and yelped with each one, trying unsuccessfully to get away or at least not receive the full force of each blow. He was a crying mess of snot and tears.

She stopped, panting, and crying herself, and said, "Do you understand?"

He gritted his teeth together, and choked back a sob. He smiled back at her malevolently. His ass was on fire.   
"It didn't hurt."

She had him by the arm, and delivered one more smack, the mother of them all. He screeched in pain, and she threw the brush across the room, shaking with rage and terror that she was actually going to physically injure him if she didn't stop. He scrambled into the corner, eyeing her warily, terrified. His expression broke her heart; she loved him and didn't want to damage their bond. His behavior HAD to stop. She sighed wearily, leaving him briefly to speak with his mother.

"Your mother...is here." He flinched, still sniffling. "Giovanni, it is the weekend. We will talk Monday, okay?" 

He made brief eye contact, nodding. 

"Okay, you may go."

He backed away cautiously.  
And Mama was here...she had been crying and he felt a pang of guilt. She had his little brothers and they stared wide eyed at everything, soaking up the world around them. 

"Oh Gio, what were you thinking?"

"I'm sorry mama." 

"My little one, it is not enough to be sorry! You must be better!!"  
She kneeled down in front of him, her warm brown eyes searching his hazel ones.  
"Look at your little brothers, see how they adore you? You must try to be an example of goodness and righteousness! Even now, they imitate you. You are a hero to them."

"I know, Mama."

"And you've upset Sister horribly. You know how much she loves you! She wants the best for you."

"I know."

"Talk to God about these things, ask for help! One day you will have a family of your own, and you will understand. You and your brothers are everything to me! You are my world, Gio. And sometimes, it is okay to just be a little boy."

She pulled a little wagon with the baby in it, and she stopped to lift the toddler into it. He tried to get her to keep holding him, grabbing at her shirt and whining, and she popped a pacifier into his mouth to entertain him. The youngest napped, awaking briefly to their voices but falling back asleep.   
They headed down the path toward home. It was a short distance, only a few blocks, and Gio ran ahead, circling back around to smile at his brother Emmanuel, who returned the grin, giggling. 

Giovanni's stomach ached with hunger. The smell of bread baking somewhere was nearly unbearable, and he swallowed a mouthful of drool. He couldn't fathom the thought of going hungry until supper. 

"Mama, can I have something to eat when we get home?"

"I don't know, baby, can't you wait?"

"No mama, please! I'm nearly STARVED! My stomach is eating itself!!" It was all he could think of, and he begged her in earnest.

"Yes baby, I will make you something."

"Thank you, mama," he said. He skipped ahead a bit. It was a good enough day. The sun was warm, he was with his family. He was going to get something to eat and his butt didn't sting as much. He didn't have to deal with school for two days. Things had been rough since papa had been gone, but they would make the best of it until he came home.

When they arrived at their little house, his best friend, Eliza was there, waiting. Mama took the baby inside, leaving the two of them with Emmanuel, who was drinking from a sippy cup and eyeing them warily. Eliza smiled at the toddler, who flirted back, batting his eyes and giggling. She stuck out her tongue at him, and he giggled more, hiding his face.

"Goof ball!" she exclaimed, before addressing Giovanni. "Heard you got spanked!"

He shrugged. "A little bit."

"Nah, someone said you really got whaled on."

He blushed, grinning back. "Well, I said 'fuck'!"

His friend's eyes widened. "You didn't neither!" 

He nodded gleefully. 

"What did you DO when you were out running around?" Eliza asked.

"Well, I went to the creek and caught guppies and tadpoles!" He grinned at her, a wide smile despite having lost a tooth. "It was amazing! They were so cold and slimy!" He closed his eyes, wearing an expression of pure rapture.

"Ooooh! I wish I could have seen them!" she exclaimed.

"I could take you!" he said. "We could go right now!" His stomach gnawed. "Maybe we could eat first, though?"

"I can't right now, Gio...but tomorrow, we could? Would you take me there, in the morning?" She took ahold of both his hands, swaying back and forth. He was suddenly acutely aware of how brown her eyes were, how shiny her dark auburn hair was, the way it curled around her shoulders; the freckles sprinkled across her nose and cheeks. She was chewing gum and he could smell the mint on her breath.

Instinctively, he leaned in towards her. "I would like that, Eliza...very much..." 

Their eyes searching each other's, he reached a hand up to her cheek, brushing a curl back. She bit her lip, and he groaned. 

Just then, Mama came out, seeing the two of them, she cried out, "Hey hey hey! I brought a snack, who is hungry? Sandwiches and cookies!" 

As she turned away to set the food down, Eliza quickly ducked in and kissed him, open mouthed on the lips, touching her tongue to his briefly. She tasted like peppermint, and boy was that fun! Mama didn't see, but his little brother did, and he shrieked gleefully. Eliza pressed her index finger to her lip, whispering shhh to the toddler.

"I can't wait til tomorrow!" she said, and he nodded. Oh, yes. Perhaps they could catch fish, but also do some more of this delightful kissing. He felt like he could be down with doing that for hours.

Then she bounded off. He watched her go, as he wolfed down his food, eager to fill his grateful stomach. Mama watched him thoughtfully. "Such a sweet girl. I think you are a bit sweet on her, yes?" He blushed and didn't answer.

She sat down beside him, pulling the toddler trying to climb on her up into her lap. He tried to reach for a cookie. "Emmanuel, what do we say?" He thought briefly.

"Peas! Haha! Pretty peas?"

She handed him the cookie, which he ate gleefully, getting more of it on himself than in his mouth. "I got your nose!" He giggled and then burst into gales of laughter, cheerful Emmanuel, who never stopped smiling. 

"That not my nose, Mama! It's Gio's!" Gio crossed his eyes at him and he fell over cackling. "Manny's nose is okay! Gio want Liza nose! Gio getting married with Liza!"


	2. The Candle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kids being cute.

"Gio, get up!!!! You have to help me!"

"Huh? What happened?" He started to get irritated, but then heard the urgency in Emmanuel's voice. He put on the little light on the nightstand. "What time is it?"

"Like 3 or 4 in the morning, I don't know!" Emmanuel's voice wavered, and his eyes were red. He looked like he might start crying again. Giovanni sat up and pulled Emmanuel to him.

"Did someone hurt you? Where are Mama and Terzo?"

"Still asleep. And no, no one hurt me. I did a dumb thing."

"What?"

"Tried to make a candle."

Giovanni sighed. "Why do you need a candle? We have electricity!"

"I don't know. I thought it would be pretty!"

Gio followed his brother to the kitchen. They tried to be quiet. He looked about. The kitchen was a complete disaster. The table and floor were strewn with tiny bits of colored paper, which had been wrapped around crayons. Multicolored wax was dripped down the front of the stove, on the floor, and across the cabinets. A small saucepan on the stove was filled with a blob of hardened melted crayon wax.

Giovanni sighed.

"I know it was stupid!" Emmanuel cried, panicky, and his voice wavered.

"No, no...hush. It's okay. Get the trash can and the broom, and get all these little papers out of here. I will take care of this wax."

They worked quickly, quietly. Gio scraped most of the wax off the stove and floor with a butter knife, while Manny swept and wiped things down. The wax left a film, and the hottest of water wouldn't remove it. Finally, he discovered rubbing alcohol would, if he had most of it scraped off. He left Emmanuel to this task and tried to clean the saucepan. He thought he could maybe just pop the wax out as a chunk, but of course not. The only thing that worked was to heat it on the stove and try to pour the wax into the trash, and he quickly saw how Manny made such a mess. 

They heard Mama cough at the same time, and a light flickered on. Emmanuel looked stricken.

"Manny!" Gio whispered loudly. "Take this by the handle, and throw it in the neighbor's trash! It's an old shitty pan, anyways!" He thrust it at the 7 year old, who ran out the door seconds before Mama came in.

"What is this funny smell, Gio? What are you doing?"

He turned from the fridge with a collection of cheese and meat.

"I'm hungry, Mama."

"Oh," she replied, lighting a cigarette. "Okay. You eat then, sweetheart." She made note of his lanky, fourteen year old frame. "You are too skinny."

She stepped out onto the front porch. "It's a lovely night."

"Yes," he said, quietly opening the kitchen screen door and letting Manny in, blocking him from view. As soon as he was out of sight, he scurried off down the hall.

Giovanni gulped down his sandwich and milk. "Night, Mama...I'm gonna lay down again."

"Night, baby."

He padded back to bed and found Manny had joined him. He didn't mind. 

"Thanks, Gio."

"You're welcome, honey." Manny snuggled into his side, yawning, and he wrapped his arm around the child. He rested his chin on Manny's head, and his breath made Manny's hair tickle his nose. His hair smelled like shampoo.

"Don't you like to color anymore?" He asked. Emmanuel's eyes fluttered open.

"You ruined your crayons."

"Oh, those were my old ones," Manny responded. "They were all broke and stuff. I got new ones at Christmas!"

They fell asleep like this, and a short time later, Terzo joined them as well.


End file.
